To be underwhelmed by the helpline

[MmeAlice]

I just rang our incountry coronavirus helpline (not UK). I called because I have come down with a streaming cold and want to be a repsonsible citizen. In the last week I have been to a musical, a school, a help yourself chinese buffet restaurant and a taekwando meet. I work from home but have two children going in to school and a husband going in to work. In our country there are a number of cases but no information given about their location. So, I expected to be told I was low risk which is what happened. However, no one took any information from me, none at all. Not a name, not an address nada zip. So if they get any confirmed cases in this area they will have no way of finding out if it is linked with anyone calling in. Am I being silly in expecting them to be taking and keeping this information?

Did they ask your symptoms?

Nope. I told them I have a stinking cold and that was it. I had headache over the weekend, diarrhoea Sunday night and now sneezing, sore throat, aches and pains headache since Tuesday night. Ordinarily I'd describe it as a stinking cold.

Sounds useless. Hope it’s a cold and you’re feeling better soon

I'm 99% sure it's just a cold - but what do I know? It just makes me cross that they could be taking this information from people and joining the dots at a later date. So blase about it!

A runny nose is not a symptom so it sounds like you've just got a stinking cold, OP!

It's not a typical symptom, no. But has been reported in a small percentage of cases. symptoms link to WHO info.

I did my research before ringing up the helpline as I didn't want to waste their time.

If everyone in the country rings up to report a cold, phone lines will be completely jammed. You didn't have typical symptoms. Not sure what you were expecting?

I was being responsible. I thought, given that we have no idea in this country (not the UK) where the cases are and who they are that they might be gathering information. My own Dr who I called first gave me the helpline number and advised me to call it. I'm just astonished that they are not collecting any information, such as name and address.

In France, they aren't even trying to trace the attendees of the evangelical meeting where five members of the same family caught the virus after attending in Mulhouse ... So it really doesn't surprise me at all

Whereas singapour has an open dashboard

co.vid19.sg/

twitter.com/RyutaroUchiyama/status/1234616723615166465

I'll tell you all if I die

@MmeAlice
And if you do die - can I have your shoes ? ;-)
Please

Sure - I'll try not to sneeze on them in the meantime.

Thx!